Testing the quality of cotton fibers and the like



Au 21, 1928. G. ZWEIGLE TESTING THE QUALITY OF COTTON FIBERS AND THE LIKE Filed Jan. '7, 1928 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 @10 a g iiII lug-an" H v n J u d 0 Z In a 6 1I I n X S k C l c k y Aug.- 21; 1928-. 1,681,605

G. ZWEIGLE TESTING THE QUALITY OF COTTON FIBERS AND THE LIKE Filed Jan. '7, 1928 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Patented Aug. 21, 1928. I

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

GOTTLOB ZWEIGLE, OF REUTLINGEN, GERMANY.

TESTING THE QUALITY OF COTTON FIBERS AND THE LIKE.

Application filed January 7, 1928, Serial No. 245,203, and in Germany January 17, 182.7.

rangement being such as to cause the feeding cylinders to move on the receiving face more quickly than their rotation takes place This arrangement, however, does not allow of the staple to be deposited in sharply separated sections, as the individual lengths overlap one another, so that the limits become inaccurate. In this manner a coherent sliver like product is obtained theexact limitation of the individual sections of the fiber lengths of which is impossible. Besides this, these known methods suffer from the drawback of so-called swimming fibers remaining between the feeding cylinders, the deposition of which fibers is a purely accidental one. Finally, only an'inacculrate parallelism of these-inaccurately guided fibers is obtained.

Furthermore, it has been proposed to test the quality of textile fibers by preparing inspecting fiber tables. In this case the fibers pass through the needles of a first needle field and the tufts thus obtained are dabbed into a second needle field. Then they are caught by their ends protruding beyond the field, withdrawn and anew dabbed into the first needle field. This done, the fibers are successive- 1y deposited on the inspecting table side by side, beginning with those the ends of which project first. When to be exactly carried out,

this method requires much time and in comparing different sorts of cotton, it does not allow ofthe best qualification of the different lots for the different purposes to be exactly ascertained.

7 Now the object of my invention is to deviate from the methods hitherto known and to have a new method and a device adapted to carry it out, which affords the possibility of testingthe quality of fibrous material in a simple and very reliable manner. This object is primarily obtainecbb-y the fact, that a quantity of determined weight of the fibrous material is subdivided into groups of different fiber lengths, whereupon the individual groups are weighed. so that the percentages to of weight of the individual groups may serve as comparison values. When for instance two sorts of cotton are to be tested, a tuft of a weight of exactly 100 mg. is taken from each sort, which tufts are subdivided by fiber length and weighed. As the initial tufts weighed exactly 100 mg. each, the found in dividual weights designate at once the percentages of weight of the individual zones of lengths and allow without any further ado to ascertain which sort is the better one and I'rort which purposes the sorts are qualified According to my'invention thezdescribed testing and sorting of the fibers maybe performed by means of two comb fields eomposed of yokes carrying needles, said comb fields being adapted to be rocked in such a manner, that for the purpose of a preliminary test either or both fields are located behind one another 111 staggered relation and with their needles pointing upward, or when the upper field is rocked 180 degrees, its needles come to lie above the gaps existing between the needles of the lower comb field. The two fields are capable of being shifted relatively to one another in parallel to the d1rection of the; needles so that they can be combined with each other by the rows of needles of the one field engaging the gaps of the needles of the other field. By this combination of the two fields the testing distance formed by the needle combs engaging each other is reduced to half the needle gap, whereby a considerably more minute sorting of the staple is obtained, as each individual needle row forms the limit of a fiber group. The yokes of the lower comb field are supported by a scaled bar which may be shifted longitudinally, so that upon moving this bar backward, those of the yoke/s which are not longer supported by it, rock down, while a mark fixed on the frame. indicates on the bar the tested length of the staple.

In order that my invention may be more easily understood, a preferred embodiment of the subjectanatter of same is illustrated by way of example in the drawings which accompany and form part of this specification. In these drawings:

Figure 1 shows the testing device in top view, 7

Figures 2 and 3 are details thereof in lateral view, partly in section,

Figures 4- to 8 are lateral views of the two comb fields in the different positions they assume in performing the testing operation.

g is a frame in which a plurality of yokes o and (Z are rockingly supported by axles a and Z), respectively, on the side extending in parallel to said axles, of which yokes are arranged rows of needles 1). These needles form v the so-called needle fields A and B. The axle a is fixedly mounted in frame g, whilst axle b is supported by hearing blocks Z which in their turn are mounted for vertical slide motion in slots of the frame 9. The bearing blocks Z may be raised or lowered by means of two angle levers m n, m n pivotally mounted on an axle 0 and the one arm 'n of which forms a fork each embracing one of the blocks Z. A roller 9 mounted on the arms m cooperates with an eccentric 6 under the action of a spring 7". The yokes forming the lower needle field A rest on a bar 8 which is mounted for longitudinal shifting motion by means of a pinion a and is provided with a scale 5. Underneath the lower needle field A is provided a stop bar u, see Figure 8, on which the individual yokes c abut upon the bar .9 being retired. The stop bar a" may be rocked upward, so that all yokes 0 may be raised again in unison. Two cross bars 6 and e are arranged so as to rock on axle b, which bars may be coupled by a catch f, see Figures 1 and 3, and by means of which all yokes (Z of theupper field B may be rocked in unison from the rear position shown in Figures 4 and into the forward position, Figures 2, 3, 6 and 7. In the rear position of the yokes (Z, the bar 0 rests on frame g, whilst with the yokes (Z in forward posit-ion bar 6 rests on a supporting face it fast on the respective bearing block Z. As to be seen from Figures 2 and 3, a catch is mounted on frame 9 which catch is inoperative as long as the axle b of the upper needle field B is in its uppermost position and'allows of this field to be rocked in both directions. lVhen axle Z) assumes however its 3 lowermost position, as shown in Figure 3,

then the catch is projects into the path of the cross bars a, e and prevents the upper needle field B from being rocked from rearposition into forward position, whilst the inverse rocking motion is admitted, as in this case catch 70 gives way. This arrangement has for its object to prevent the needle field B asa whole or individual yokes thereof to be rock-ed forward, when the axle Z) is lowered, as otherwise the'needles of the two fields A, B would interfere with one another. 7 I

The described device operates as follows:

Before the test begins, the two needle fields assume the position illustrated in Figure 4.. Now a fiber tuft- F of a determined weight, for instance 100 mg, is dabbed into the lower needle field A. This done,"the catch f is released and the bar a is rocked into the position shown in Figure 5. Now the fibers of the tuft F are transferred from the lower field A into the upper field B in such a manner, that the fibers lie in the latter arranged in length order. This is performed by withdrawing by means of tongs always the fibers projecting beyond the front yoke of the lower needle field A and dabbing them into the upper field B. When all projecting fibers are removed and transferred to field B, the first yoke cis rocked downward by shifting the bars backw rd. After having lowered in this manner all the yokes c and transferred the tuft F from field A to field B, the bar a is rocked again into the rear position shown in Figure 4 and coupled with bar 6 by thecatch f. The lowered yokes 0 of field A are raised by means of stop bar u and bar 8 is shifted forward to support them again. Now the whole upper field B is rocked into the forward positionshown in Figure 6, in which position the individual needle rows 7) of field B are located exactly above the gaps of the needle rows 1') of the lower field A. Now the upper field B is shifted in parallel to itself by turning theeecentric E, and is loweredinto the lower field A, as shown in Figure 7. The tuft F now lies in the double field A B in length order. Thereupon the fibers are withdrawn in groups from-the double field A B. Each time no more fibers project beyond the field, a lower yoke ,0 and p then an "upper yoke cZ (after the catch f has been released) is rocked downward and up ward, respectively, and the fibers projecting beyond the next yoke are withdrawn. Owing to the needle rows of the upper field engaging in the gaps of the lower rows, the testing distance'is reduced to the half of that of the individual fields, whereby the separation of the fiber tufts becomes considerably more minute, as each individual needle rowforms the limit of a fiber group. The scale 2' of bar 5 indicates in co-operation with a pointer (not shown) arranged on the frame 9 the exact length of the individual fiber groups. These groups are then weighed. As the orig inal tuft weighed mg, the found single weights indicate without any further calculation the percentages of weight of the individual zones of length. When comparing tests are made, these single weights indicate at once what sort of fibrous material is the better one or for which purposes the different sorts are best adapted.

Of course it would be possible to transfer the tufts several times. In this case a takeout fork is used, the prongs of which are inserted in the needle gaps below the tuft dabbed thereinto, so that the latter may be lifted without deterioration from the upper field B and transferred to the lowerfield A. By means ofsaid fork which serves also for dabbing, the tuft is uniformly dabbed into the lower needle field and in particular in such a manner, that the fibers are now withdrawn firstly from the other side. This re peated operation gives still more exact testing results. I A

normal posi Although the described apparatus is particularly well suited to perform themethod forming the subject-matter of my invention, it maybe employed with the same good effect even for other purposes, for instance for preparing the above-mentioned fiber length tables.

In the claims which follow, the term normal position refers to the position of the upper group of combs shown in Figs. 2 and 3 in which the teeth point downward from the yolres, and the term inverse position refers to the position shown in Fig. 4 in which the teeth point upward from the yolres.

What I claim, is

1. A device for testing the quality of cotton fibers and similar fibrous material com prising a frame, two groups of nested needle combs extending horizontally and loosely pivoted each on one of the two superimposed horizontal axes and having their needles extending vertically in staggered relation to and opposite each other, the combs of the upper group being adapted tobe rocked from "tion into an inverse position.

2. A device for testing the quality of cotton fibers and similar fibrous material comprising a frame, two groups of nested needle combs extending horizontally and loosely pivoted each on one of two superimposed horizontal axes and having their needles extending vertically in staggered relation to and opposite each other, the combsof the upper group being adapted to be rocked from normal position into an inverse position, and means for shifting the axis of said upper comb group vertically;

3. A device for testing the quality of cotton fibers and similar fibrous material comprising a frame, two groups of nested needle combs extending horizontally and loosely vpivoted each on one of two superimposed horizontal axes and having their needles extending vertically in staggered relation to and opposite each other, the combs of the upper group being adapted to be rocked from normal position into an lnverse position, means for shifting the axis of said upper comb group vertically and means for 1nutually coupling the combs of said upper group to be rocked in unison.

4. A device for testing the quality of cotton fibers and similar fibrous material comprising a frame, two groups of nested needle combs extending horizontally and loosely pivoted each on one of two superimposed horizontal axesand having their needles extending vertically in staggered relation to and opposite each other, the combs of the upper group being adapted to be rocked from normal position into an inverse position, means for shifting the axis of said upper combgroup vertically, means for mutually coupling the combs of said upper group to be rocked in unison, and means for and opposite each other, the combs of 5'. A device for testing the quality of cotton fibers and similar fibrous material comprising a frame, two groups of nested needle combs extending horizontally and loosely pivoted each on one of two superimposed horizontal axes and having their needles extending vertically in staggered relation to the upper group being adapted to be rocked from normal position into an inverse position, and abar horizontally shiftably supported in said frame and adapted either to support the combs of said lower comb group or to release them, when shifted backward.

6. A device for testing the quality of cot- 7 ton fibers and similar fibrous material comprising a frame, two groups of nested needle combs extending horizontally and loosely pivoted each on one of two superimposed horizontal axes and having their needles extending vertically in staggered relation to and oppositev each other, the combs of the upper group being adapted to be rocked from normal position into an inverse position, a bar horizontally shiftably supported in said frame and adapted either to support the combs of said lower comb group or to release them, when shifted backward, a scale on said bar adapted to indicate the number of the combs released by said bar.

7. A device for testing the quality of cotton fibers and similar fibrous material comprising a frame, two groups of nested needle combs extending horizontally and loosely pivoted each on one of two superimposed horizontal axes and having their needles extending vertically in staggered relation to and opposite each other, the combs of the upper group being adapted to be rocked from normal position into an inverse position, a bar horizontally shiftably supported in said frame and adapted either to support the combs ofsaid lower comb group or to release them, when shifted backward, a cross bar pivoted on the frame and adapted to form a stop for said released combs and to rock them in common back into normal position.

8. A device for testing the quality of cotton fibersand similar fibrous material comprising a frame, two groups of nested needle combs extending horizontally and loosely pivoted each on one of two superimposed horizontal axes and having their needles extending vertically and opposite each other, the combs of the upper group being adapted to be rocked from normal position into an inverse position, means for shifting the axis of said upper comb group vertically, means for mutually coupling the combs of said upper group to be rocked in unison, means for preventing them ice 'in staggeredrelation to a to be rocked from inverse to normal position When their axis has been shifted into a lower position, a bar horizontally shiftably supported in said frame and adapted either to support the combs of said lower group or to release them, when shifted backward, and a cross bar pivoted on said frame and adapted GOTTLOB ZWEIGLE. 

